Ai no Yume
by Purple Mongoose
Summary: What if the prophecy for Crystal Tokyo wasn't as accurate as everyone thought? [Horrifically old DBZ/SM fanfic, relatively outdated - but I have many a fond memory over it. ^^ Complete]
1. Prelude

Ai no Yume  
  
*****  
  
Prelude  
  
  
  
  
She was cold and wet and her skin felt frozen. Lips blue, hidden by a curtain of her blonde hair, she stumbled haphazardly along the road, naked aside from the long, tumbling locks of her silken hair cascading around her. She knew who she was…Venus…  
  
Wrinkling her nose, she crossed her arms about her chest, trying to force away the freezing rain. The Princess…she had to find the Princess.  
  
'Mercury!' she cried desperately in her mind, 'Mars! Jupiter! I am Venus, you must respond!'   
  
None of her subordinates, her friends, her sister by oath, replied. She was alone, along an abandoned stretch of empty, broken road, unable to feel the normally close aura of her home planet, Venus-sei. "Oh, please, God, I beg, do not let me be alone…," she whimpered, tripping over a small pebble and landing on her outflung arm and her splayed knees, bowing her head as she wept. "How can we summon the Crystal Era if we cannot find each other?" she moaned, pulling herself into a ball, knees and shins on the ground, feet arched, arms wrapped tightly around her breasts. As she moaned, low and keenly, she was swept by a barrage of memories and instructions…  
  
[["Minako-san, our battle with Chaos signified the beginning of the Senshi dormancy," Diana, the petite kitten, explained to the puzzled Senshi leader. "Within the space of five years, each one of you guardians of the inner planets shall enter a deep slumber, as the four outer guardians return to their individual kingdoms, to await in their own sleep the coming of the Crystal Era. You will awaken into a world of destruction and hurt, caused by the inflictions of a super-race known as the Saiya-jins, brought about by a solitary soldier named 'Kakorotto.' "]]  
  
"No," Venus cried again, softer and with a great deal less fervency. "This cannot be. We were supposed to be near each other…near the Princess."  
  
Sniffling and feeling her sorrow and loneliness turn to rage, she screamed, pounding the ground with her fists, raging and cursing in a language she was only just beginning to recall. "Damn you, Queen Selenity!" Venus heaved, thrusting a fist deep into the icy roadside mud, "Damn you times ten!"  
  
Sobbing wildly, she knelt over again, burying her face in her arms, not caring about her lack of clothing or the freezing precipitation. All she knew was anger and sorrow and a longing…a deeply rooted longing…  
  
And she realized in that moment of pure clarity, that she needed to find her companions and her Princess…but she was tired and exhaustion coursed through her veins, brought about by the sudden, unexpected rush of adrenaline in her bloodstream.  
  
Before sleep could claim her completely, she plucked several strands of grass, rolling onto her back as she wove the greenery into an intricate mat that fit in the palm of her hand. Murmuring a spell sleepily, the miniscule mat stretched and arched, forming an elegant green dome around her, through which only those pure of heart could enter.   
  
She never would have imagined the man who would find her…  
  
  
  
  
  
  
Well? Whaddaya think about it so far? I'm righting this impulsively, so it might get weird at times. Why, yes, the man who finds Venus is none other than Juunanagou (drop-dead gorgeous 17…king of all bishounen…*le dreamy stare*) and whom else does he take her to but his sister, Juuhachigou (18), and her husband, Kuririn? Anyway, I swear, this WILL get better. And, please, if you're wasting time reading this, could you spare the half a minute it'll take to review? Please? I'd love to hear from any readers out there and I absolutely adore getting to read suggestions! I even use 'em- -giving credit where it's due, of course.  
  
Pwease?  
  
Purple Mongoose/PallaPlease.  
  
  
DISCLAIMER:  
The Sailor Senshi are © to Takeuchi Naoko-san, Kodansha, DiC, Cloverway, Toei Animation, Mixx Entertainment, etc.  
The Dragonball characters are © to Toriyama Akira-san, Shogakun (?), FUNimation, Toei Animation, Viz Entertainment, etc.  
"Ai no Yume" in its entirety, all situations and plot devices thus far, is © to myself, referred to on-line as PallaPlease or Purple Mongoose/PallaPlease. [Credit for idea for scene in 'Time Warped' is given duly to Kawaii Lil Dejiko.] 


	2. First Meeting

Ai no Yume   
  
*****  
  
First Meeting  
  
  
  
  
He felt her before he saw her.  
  
The kind of subtle power that remains kept in check, as if the owner didn't know of its existence, washed down through the dawning forest and he paused in his walk, erasing all of his troubled thoughts when he sensed her in his mind. Coy, flirtatious, but desperate and powerful, the tiny taste of the power she radiated exploded into his mind, tearing and ripping in its longing to find another. Another what?  
  
God, he was getting one hell of a headache. Talk about your power trips…  
  
He frowned. Such energy…how the hell had that much energy remained undiscovered?  
  
Even better a question was the one, how the HELL could anyone hold that much power contained?  
  
Finally, with an irritated sigh, he whirled around on his heel, stomping through the undergrowth carelessly, lapels of his knee-long overcoat bouncing with each bounding step.  
  
He wasn't sure how he knew it was female- -he wasn't even sure it was alive.  
  
But, Juunanagou decided quickly, whatever it was, it could sure cast some fancy magic.  
  
Stepping closer to the enormous structure of…was that grass?! Damn, he really needed to get his brain checked. All this recluse-nature-hermit-living-alone-in-forest stuff was driving him nuts.  
  
Leaning closer to the side of…grass, he touched it.  
  
And promptly fell through it.  
  
Landing on his knees and one hand, he pushed up, jumping back up to his feet in a single fluid motion. That was about the moment he saw the very naked, very pretty woman lying curled on her side in the middle of the hut.   
  
"Oh," Juunanagou said calmly, remembering to blink somewhere along the line, "shit."  
  
(*)  
  
She could feel something.  
  
No, she corrected herself as she floated in a dream state, someone.  
  
A man…but he wasn't truly human…  
  
God, was everything in this world screwed?  
  
Lost in the haze of the half-sleep stage, Venus shifted, knitting her golden eyebrows together before realization and awareness sunk in.  
  
Man.  
  
Standing in the hut.  
  
Venus.  
  
Lying down, unclothed.  
  
Crud.  
  
Blue eyes snapping open, she sat up sharply, golden hair flying about her body. Without warning, she flew to her feet, twisting herself in a flying arc to the far side of the makeshift grass hut, hastily sizing up her opponent, who had fallen into an offensive position as if he was bred to fight.  
  
He was, she noticed with a portion of her mind, extremely handsome in a pretty, deadly way. "Who are you?" he was asking, voice cold and ice blue eyes narrowed dangerously. She could sense barely controlled power rolling off him in waves…  
  
"Watashi wa Venus," she snapped, "And you would be?"  
  
The man smirked, bending one leg, and she sensed both their power levels rising. "I," he mock-bowed his head, "am your doom."  
  
He wanted to fight, she realized, he lusted for battle. Crap. Why did all the cute guys have to be bloodthirsty savages?   
  
It was then that she realized he was literally powering down, and the brown overcoat he had been wearing smacked her square in the elfin face. With a squawk and a vehement curse, Venus became intimate with the ground. Clawing at the cloth, she pulled it off her face and glared evilly at the man.   
  
"Put the damn coat on," he said patiently, crossing his arms across his white t-shirt, "because I don't think you wish to be naked."  
  
Needless to say, Venus went bright red, in the very reminiscent way of a Christmas tree…  
  
(*)  
  
"So, really," Venus asked cautiously, trudging through the vast, green, sweetly smelling forest behind the man-who-wasn't-a-man, "who are you?"  
  
"Watashi wa," he ducked under a thick tree branch, dead-straight raven hair whispering as a light breeze whipped gently through it, "Jinzouningen Juunanagou."  
  
"Cyborg Seventeen…?" she murmured, eyes staring intently at his back. "You aren't human?"  
  
"Iie…and hai." He walked quicker, gathering speed. "I was once human, but a bastard named Gero…ah, altered me. Made me stronger. Better. Faster."  
  
Venus stopped walking, watching his back, noticing that he had tensed. "Gomen nasai, Juunanagou-san," she said quietly. "You had your humanity stolen from you."  
  
He glanced over his shoulder and sneered. "I never had humanity." Turning back abruptly, he stopped moving. "By the way," Juunanagou tossed lightly at her, "how fast can you run?"  
  
"Why do I need to run?" she queried, feeling goosebumps rise on her arms.  
  
"My sister and her koibito will have better clothing for you to wear," he nodded his head at where the bottom hem of his overcoat cut off halfway down her thighs. She flushed and he grinned, looking startlingly feline. "And I do not need a human slowing me down out here for any longer than necessary." He began walking again.  
  
"And who," she mumbled sullenly, stumbling after him, "said I was human? DAMN!!" Sitting down sharply and on the verge of tears, Venus jerked her foot up, studying the large, sharp rock imbedded deeply into her left heel. "God, my life can't get any worse, can it? K'soooo…" With that out of the way, the true leader of the Senshi surrendered all dignity as she kept her foot propped up on the opposite knee, paying no mind to the overcoat riding up her legs, and she burst into rolling, sparkling tears. "It isn't faaa~air!" she wailed, "All I wanted was to be a star and I just had to be a Senshi and now the frickin' prophecy is screwed and I've got a damned BOULDER IN MY FOOT!!!"  
  
Juunanagou studied her with a strange expression on his face before sighing, shrugging, and coming over to crouch before her, gently taking her foot into his hands. Probing the tender area about where the large rock jutted out, the skin was already slick with blood, he looked up, telling her, "Grit your teeth very hard."  
  
"Why?" she sniffled, and then her eyes widened. "You're not going to…OWW!!"  
  
Grasping the part of the rock not in her skin, he ripped it out, pressing his wrist against the gash to stop the sudden blood flow. "Idiot," he grunted, "watch where you put your feet."  
  
Peeved, Venus snapped right back, "I don't have any shoes!"  
  
"It isn't my fault," Juunanagou snarled, lifting his free hand and biting the mouth of his white glove, working it off his hand. "Tyumm thimn mmnunp," he mumbled around the cloth.  
  
"Pardon?"  
  
He spat the glove out by her hand. "Tear this up. Preferably in one long, thick piece."  
  
"Why?"  
  
"So I can BANDAGE your ankle!"  
  
"FINE, no need to get all PISSY about it. Yeesh." Muttering a few select naughty words Artemis would have been ashamed to hear coming from her, and making up a few new ones she quite liked, Venus obliged, destroying the dirtied glove and handing the strip of cloth to him.  
  
Juunanagou lowered his head as he tightly wound the cloth around her bloody foot and she studied the gleaming of partial sunlight off his jet-black hair. The emotions tugging inside her- -were they the ones Aino Minako experienced? Crushes? Sexual attraction? Sometimes, Venus wondered how much of her was a princess, how much of her was a Senshi, and how much of her was just plain, ordinary Minako.  
  
And as she watched his long, slender fingers gracefully tie the makeshift bandage tightly around the gash in her foot, she morosely realized that things were going to be a little more difficult than she'd imagined.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
Urgh! I hate this chapter so much! It's so horrible! I think I'm going to rewrite it eventually, because I originally wanted Juunanagou and Venus/Minako to battle, and I wanted them to actually make it to Juuhachigou and Kuririn. Dang! I wrote this at night, anyway, so that's my lame-o excuse for the poor quality of it. *sheepish grin* Next chapter will feature Rei and Gohan…in a completely different timeline than Minako (think Mirai no Trunks, when Trunks is only, what, ten?). I hope for this thing to one day reach Iliad status of confusion.  
  
Purple Mongoose/PallaPlease.  
  
[PS~ Pwetty pwease review??]  
  
[PSS~ Major thanksies go to Rachael for the cute pic of Minako holding a Juunanagou dolly! That's the cutest pic I've seen in ages! And it gives me a fanfic idea...no! Resist! Resist!...aw, dang, I give up.]  
  
DISCLAIMER:  
The Sailor Senshi are © to Takeuchi Naoko-san, Kodansha, DiC, Cloverway, Toei Animation, Mixx Entertainment, etc.  
The Dragonball characters are © to Toriyama Akira-san, Shogakun (?), FUNimation, Toei Animation, Viz Entertainment, etc.  
"Ai no Yume" in its entirety, all situations and plot devices thus far, is © to myself, referred to on-line as PallaPlease or Purple Mongoose/PallaPlease. [Credit for idea for scene in 'Time Warped' is given duly to Kawaii Lil Dejiko.] 


	3. Hell and Cars

Ai no Yume  
  
*****  
  
Hell and Cars  
  
  
  
  
She felt like she'd been run through the jaws of a rabid, drunk, bloodthirsty shark of death.  
  
And, to add to the perpetual joy, she was wandering, lost, through a desolate land ravaged and torn apart by some kind of monstrous evil…in her Senshi uniform. Which was only a slight improvement to her earlier state of complete lack of clothing…oh, ye God, these high heels were _killing_ her feet! When one caught between two large, blocky rocks, the twig of a heel snapped off sharply and Mars learned that the dirt in this time smelled foully like blood. Gagging softly, she sat up.  
  
For what seemed to be the millionth time, she closed her eyes and concentrated…the strongest of the Senshi when it came to things such as ESP, Mars sought out any familiar signatures, trying to find her sisters-by-oath.  
  
After a fruitless search turned out nothing but a couple of strange signatures, creased and twisted in her mind's eye as if they weren't pure-blooded, the hypocritically icy Senshi bowed her head to mumble to the ground. "How can I put this lightly…screw it! SCREW IT ALL!!" Grinding her teeth together painfully, she tossed her thick black hair over her shoulder and wrenched her heels off, tossing them carelessly over her shoulder. "Why," she muttered, tearing the long ribbons on the back of her skirt off and peeling her gloves away from her clammy skin so as to create makeshift shoes, "does this kind of sickly perverse thing happen every three weekends? Why," she continued, tying the red cloth to the white cloth, absently unthreading the ribbon on her chest to add to the half-woven 'slippers' as she talked softly to herself, "can't I have a normal life? And, more importantly," she stood up, taking a few tentative steps to test the durability and feel of her new foot garb, "where's the rest of the girls?"  
  
One of the hybrid signatures was right behind her.  
  
Whirling on her heel, Mars screamed once, a fatal cry of, "Fire Soul!", the power of which had grown over her years as a Senshi so that it had become her favorite attack in or not in Super Senshi mode.   
  
The signature had vanished and a strong arm closed tightly against her jugular, creating enough pain to warn her but keep her out of panic, for the 'attacker' was concerned for this pretty (and vicious) young woman's sanity and abilities.   
  
Minutes later, the man with short, spiky black hair would wish he hadn't worried at all.  
  
Channeling fire literally through her veins, Mars sent the unseen flames into the man holding her captive, satisfied to hear him grunt, hiss a slightly volatile curse, and let go swiftly. Happily twisting around in an airborne loop, Mars grinned ferally, launching a roundhouse kick at her opponent, slamming her bandaged foot harshly into his face.   
  
However, she underestimated him and he grabbed her ankle even as his head snapped to a side, throwing her in a high arch over his head.   
  
A dirty expletive erupted joyfully from the young woman in the red fuku, her body screeching a few inches along the ground before her back hit a large piece of debris and she spasmed involuntarily, accidentally letting loose a set of 'Burning Mandala' with her mind, which, in turn, activated the pent-up energy leashed carefully behind her fingertips.  
  
The flames ripped forth, knocking her supposed attacker down and draining her of all her energy reserves.  
  
As the man collapsed, she got a clear look at his face.  
  
He was sad.  
  
"Gomen nasai," she murmured, and then sweet oblivion claimed her for a while, a small duration of time.  
  
(*)  
  
"Gohan-sensei, where are you?" Trunks called, rubbing irritatedly at his runny nose. He absolutely _hated_ colds…  
  
The sun was setting and chill temperatures once again began to set into the dank, obsolete land. A rough wind tousled the seven-year old's light lavender hair and he sneezed, scratching at his itching eyes. Allergies…every year…  
  
Finally, freezing, hovering in mid-air over an indistinguishable pile of rubble with his mother's worried instructions to be back by the time the sun completely vanished, Trunks threw all caution literally into the wind, bellowing, "GOHAN-SENSEIIIIIIIIII!!!!!" Being scolded by both his sensei and his mother later was, he reasoned, much more preferable to not having a sensei to scold him at all later. What with the Jinzouningen behaving even more violently than before, Trunks wasn't ready to leave the man who was his closest friend alone at night.  
  
And then he saw it.  
  
A droplet of crimson blood, staining the dirt, followed by the sound of harsh, ragged breathing, and a scraping-dragging sound.  
  
Swallowing the sudden lump in his throat, Trunks accelerated his air speed, whipping around a half-demolished building obstructing the view.  
  
A small woman with long raven hair and a grimacing face was carrying Son Gohan limply over her shoulder, his body dotted with burns. She was wearing a strange red miniskirt wound over a tight, blood-stained white leotard of sorts with puffy red-pink sleeves and a sailor-style cloth about the collar.  
  
Finding his voice, trembling though it was, he slowly questioned, "Daijoubu?"  
  
She shook her head. "Demo, this man…he needs help."  
  
"Gohan-sensei…"  
  
Gohan stirred, moaned once, and fell to sleep, head bent oddly on her shoulder, though he couldn't care less.  
  
(*)  
  
Staring darkly at Juunanagou's back, Venus considered hitting him for all of two seconds, instead opting to whine, "Are we almost there yet?" as she leaned heavily on the large stick (though she personally thought it was a tree trunk) she had been given to use a crutch.  
  
His eye twitched once and he replied, forcibly calm, "As I said for the past three hundred and fifty-seven times in the last five minutes, we are almost there."  
  
"But I wanna be there no~ow!"  
  
He stopped walking, and tried to tell his programmed nerves to _not_ kill the petite, though energetic, woman. "Unfortunately, we aren't there now," he spoke slowly, forced.  
  
Venus sighed, swept a blonde bang out of her eyes, and quickly stepped up to Juunanagou, tapping him on his shoulder. "You're so serious," she teased. "Just another arrogant man out to rule the world. You and Demando would've been best-friends."  
  
Trying his level best to ignore the temptingly close warmth of her body as well as the cheerful openness of her personality, he smiled wanly, pushing aside a few thick branches to reveal a small car parked by a hidden country road. "Care if I drive?" he asked with a smirk as she glared.  
  
"I can drive very well, I'll have you know!" she cried indignantly, before pausing. "As long as there aren't mailboxes in the way. I have the strangest habit of knocking mailboxes down…"   
  
Raising an eyebrow, Juunanagou sardonically bowed, wafting a hand at the car door. With an imperial sniff, Venus stuck her nose in the air, and limped ahead of him.  
  
He sincerely put all his will-power into not staring at the hemline of his overcoat rising and falling with each of her stumbling steps.He failed, but he still tried, and that was what mattered.  
  
Of course, she tripped, fell, and Juunanagou couldn't stop the snicker that ripped from his mouth. "Graceful," he moved to her side, hoisting her over his shoulder amid protests and a flurry of rather painful kicks, "aren't you?" That said, he kicked the car door open, dropped her casually on the clean seat and buckled her in.  
  
The last word the forest denizens heard before the car started was, "BAKAAAAAA!"  
  
And then there was silence.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
Go ahead, I know it was short. I'm a wee bit brain-dead and tired right now, so forgive me…and next chapter will have more screwing around with time, as Ami finds herself in the timeline of Mirai no Trunks when Trunks has returned from the Cell 'games' and she finds that time is a tricky thing…especially when objects start appearing that didn't exist the moment before…like the worn picture of a young, scholarly appearing man with short, spiky black hair holding a small woman with flowing raven hair and intense, flame-filled violet eyes…  
  
Oi! This chapter sucked and I know it! But, I will need 'filler' chapters anyway…so, ja mata!  
  
Purple Mongoose/PallaPlease.  
  
[PS~ Take the thirty seconds to review, please!]  
  
DISCLAIMER:  
The Sailor Senshi are © to Takeuchi Naoko-san, Kodansha, DiC, Cloverway, Toei Animation, Mixx Entertainment, etc.  
The Dragonball characters are © to Toriyama Akira-san, Shogakun (?), FUNimation, Viz Entertainment, etc.  
"Ai no Yume" in its entirety, all situations and plot devices thus far, is © to myself, referred to on-line as PallaPlease or Purple Mongoose/PallaPlease. [Credit for idea for scene in 'Time Warped' is given duly to Kawaii Lil Dejiko.] 


	4. Time Warped

Ai no Yume  
  
*****  
  
Time Warped  
  
  
  
  
Super Sailor Mercury climbed over a small pile of rubble, trying to ignore the casual stinging feeling around her ankles that always seemed to come whenever she wore the blue boots for prolonged amounts of time. She felt disoriented, confused and lost in this strange future. There had once been great destruction, yes, she could feel it…but the planet was mending, healing and she had no use…so why had she awoken so late? Puzzling over the many complicated answers that were possible, she concluded that three were the most probable.  
  
One. Something drastic had happened, such as the being who was supposed to bring havoc to Earth getting killed or given amnesia, etc.  
  
Two. Someone harnessed a great enough power to go back in time while avoiding both Pluto and the Time Gate.  
  
Three. Both of the above.  
  
Inhaling sharply, she swiped her glove across her sweating forehead, licking her parched lips. One thing was for sure, the temperatures here were stifling… Bending over, hands spread on her exposed knees below her miniskirt, she exhaled slowly, feeling dizzy and sick. Why couldn't she find the others? Her mental (albeit weak) bond with her fellow Senshi and her portable Mercury computer couldn't pick up signs of them. Damn it all.  
  
Rubbing her temples with her gloved fingers, she closed her large blue eyes momentarily, trying to catch her coughing breath. This heat…is unbearable!, she thought desperately, feeling as if her lungs were caving in. Sinking to her knees, her breath coming thick and heavy, hindered by a burning pain, Mercury tried her damnedest to not give in to heat stroke, to not faint…oh, hell. She weaved from side to side in her crouch of sorts, as the idea of giving up and sleeping became more and more tempting…  
  
"Daijoubu?" someone asked her, voice close to her ear.  
  
Turning slowly, blinking weakly through the befuddling haze of the heat, she barely made out a concerned tan face framed by shoulder length lavender hair, blue eyes staring at her curiously. "I…," she mumbled, trying to stand up, "am perfectly fine, sir…as soon as the world stops spinning, I'll be on my waaaaa~aaay!" She tipped over, landing in the dirt sideways, face pressed sharply against the dust. This felt good, she decided, yes, indeed, it did. In fact, she felt like staying right there…  
  
(*)  
  
Trunks sighed, knelt beside the unconscious girl (why in God's name was she wearing a bathing suit with a skirt?) and slipped his arms under her, pulling her up into his arms. She was immensely light, almost insubstantial by the feel of it, and very pretty in a shy sort of way. Waves of short blue hair fringed around her ears and she radiated levels of power he had only 'seen' in Gokuu-san prior to his untimely death.   
  
Something 'twang'ed in his chest and he wrinkled his eyebrows together, studying the face of the china girl. She reminded him of someone…a pretty young woman with raven hair talking to Gohan-sensei…what the HELL? He'd never met a woman in his time with raven hair! Mars…  
  
Riiiiiight. He definitely needed to get out of the sunlight.  
  
The girl murmured something and turned her head, snuggling closer to him.  
  
Aw, crud.  
  
(*)  
  
Buruma pushed her light blue hair back from her face as she changed the damp washcloth covering the strange girl's forehead, checking her wrist for the rhythm of her heartbeat and feeling her cheek for the temperature. Good. For her physical height, weight, and age, the young woman's body was back to normal.  
  
"What do you think, Okaasan?" Trunks asked softly, leaning forward over her shoulder to look at the pretty woman's peaceful face. "She doesn't seem garbed as if she was from around here…"   
  
"Perhaps," Buruma acknowledged, turning to a wooden chest and opening its lid, digging through it for some less revealing clothes and an old book. "However, it's also possible she _is_ from around here…just not this time."  
  
Her son looked at his mother quizzically and she smiled ruefully, placing the clothing articles beside the slumbering girl on a bare bedside table and flipping through the pages of the dusty book. Scanning faded pictures and worn texts, she thumbed the pages, running her index fingers down the columns expertly, though she seemed to get frustrated when she couldn't find what she was looking for. "Come _on_, I know it's in here," she muttered and Trunks casually bent forward to look at the title of the book.  
  
'Senshi and Science of the Day, v3.5. Published 2019 AD by Dr. Ami Mizuno of the University of Harvard.'   
  
He raised an eyebrow. AD? That was centuries ago…and Harvard had been annihilated by the Jinzouningen in HIS time, and reduced to rubble by Cell in the alternate timeline.   
  
If Buruma-okaasan hadn't made him literate in various languages, he still would have been shocked by what he saw next.  
  
There was a photo, right beneath the large, bold black letters on the cover, and underneath the picture were, in scrolling computer English cursive, the words, 'Dr. Ami Mizuno, Expert on Scientific Anomalies and Unusual Phenomena, Previously of Tokyo University.' But it wasn't the impressive title she had that caught his attention, no. It was the picture itself. Even though years had worn down the quality of the picture, it had been preserved by Capsule Corps. before the Jinzouningen and he could see, very clearly, that the woman on the cover was also the woman in the medical cot.  
  
"Ah-HA!"  
  
Trunks jumped, startled by his mother's outburst.   
  
Triumphantly, she twisted the book around for him to read and see the photos.  
  
"Look at the picture on the right page. See the girl with blue hair, in the weird blue fuku?" Buruma grinned and he nodded. "That's Super Sailor Mercury, one of the nine Senshi of the old solar system, the original guardians of Earth. Our little mystery maiden," she took one hand off the book and jabbed her thumb at the young woman beginning to stir and wake up, "is none other than the soldier of wisdom and water. To top it off, she wrote this thing…but I suppose the Senshi had some sort of ward or something to keep their identities from being discovered. It must have worn off over time."  
  
"But, Okaasan, that doesn't explain why she's here. How did she get here?"  
  
"I'm not sure," the older 'bluenette' admitted slowly, "Maybe the 'soldier of time,' Pluto, opened time? No, no, that theory doesn't hold solid with the information in this book…Pluto was given three taboos. Do not interfere with time, do not stop time, and do not use time. She could be punished with eternal banishment or death. No…something else is vital to Mercury's appearance. Something I can't figure out…" She frowned and bit her lip. "Damn it…"  
  
"Prophecy…"  
  
Two heads deep in contemplation shot up, surprised, to see the soldier dressed in the blue sweatshirt and black slacks Buruma had placed near her. Quietly, she reiterated, "The prophecy. My fellow Senshi, our guardian felines, and our lieges were placed into a slumber of which we would awaken and heal a broken world destroyed by a race known as the Saiya-jins, by a soldier named Kakorotto and a prince named Vejiita." She sighed, as if a heavy weight crushed her chest. " 'From these ashes,' " she seemed to be quoting, " 'a twisted man will try to resist the invasion so he could reign the world himself, with an army known as the Red Ribbon. But he would be stopped and only a decade and three years later would he emerge again, this time with two cold cyborgs, known as Juunanagou and Juuhachigou, the twins. Then the Senshi and their lieges will emerge from their sleep and, aided by the wisdom of their feline guardians, they will destroy the evil, though the heart of Venus shall be broken twice during this time of rebirth. Many will die, but the Crystal Era shall be born and from it will the Earth be restored to beauty and the alignment of the solar system healed.' " Mercury closed her eyes, and sighed again, running her now ungloved hand over her tired face. "But something has gone terribly awry from the prophecy. I can not find my companions anywhere and I am useless in this time…I can not help a healing world." Choking on a helpless sob, she slammed her fist onto the bedside table, causing a picture frame to bounce off the wood and into her lap. "Wha…?" Hadn't there been nothing on that dresser a moment before?  
  
Rei. Mars.   
  
Oh, God, she was holding a picture of Mars, wrapped in the arms of a young man with short spiky black hair dressed in an orange gi.   
  
"Who took this?" she asked suddenly, voice going up in pitch as she felt the beginning stages of panic well up in her tightening chest cavity. "Who is this woman? Who is this man?"  
  
"That's Hino Rei, Super Sailor Mars," Buruma said without thinking, "and the man is Son Gohan, one of the two Saiya-jin hybrids. Trunks, my son, is the only partial Saiya-jin alive. Rei was taken from us on the day Trunks turned eight…Gohan died about two years later. Why do you ask?"  
  
Mind whirring, Mercury- -no, she reminded herself, Ami- -wove her fingers into her own hair, pulling gently as she thought swiftly. "How old are you, Trunks-san?" she shot at the man.  
  
Taken aback, he stuttered, "T-twenty."  
  
"Twelve years ago," Ami muttered, "Twelve goddamn years ago. God, I hate time…"  
  
Wait a minute.  
  
That was it.  
  
TIME.  
  
"That's why I couldn't find my friends!" she cried, leaping up from the bed, clutching Trunks bare arms, the fringe of his leather vest and the hem of his black tanktop brushing her thumbs. "I've searched everywhere with my mind and heart…but not every-TIME! We awoke in the right places, us Inner Senshi, but NOT IN THE RIGHT TIMES."  
  
The normally shy Senshi of Mercury laughed, pulling the taller man into a hug as Buruma discreetly sneaked away.  
  
Even though he had just met her, Trunks felt as if he was connected to her in some way…was this the bonding Okaasan had told him a few Saiya-jins experienced? Love?   
  
It couldn't be.  
  
But he still lifted his arms, touching her shoulders as she held him tightly, laughing.   
  
"All I need to do is find what times they're each in! And then I can go to them!"  
  
Trunks understood the emotions she was experiencing. Hope, friendship…so why did it hurt to think that the woman he had only known for five hours (though technically only five minutes, to go by talking terms) was leaving?  
  
Yup, he'd been out in the sun too long.  
  
(*)  
  
Buruma watched the two with a lopsided, wistful smile. "Oh, Vejiita," she murmured to herself, touching her left breast where she could feel her steady heartbeat, "your son is so much like you. He can't admit that he's fallen in love…" And she could tell by his expression, half-wondering, half-denying, that this was the truth.  
  
It hurt to think of the arrogant prince she had loved…  
  
Squeezing her eyes shut tightly, she leaned heavily against the wall, sliding down and crying silently, her heart aching painfully.   
  
(*)  
  
Rei soundlessly braided her thick mane of dark hair, watching the man in the medical cot with a sad expression on her face.   
  
"Hi."  
  
She turned, looking over her shoulder at the young boy she had met earlier, his thick lavender hair short and strictly held in place. He inhaled deeply through his nostrils and she smiled sympathetically, having heard the sound of snot in his nose. Poor kid must have allergies or a cold. What was his name again? Oh, yes, Trunks. He'd introduced her to his mother, Buruma, before the man she'd, for lack of a better term, barbecued was frisked away and tended to by the motherly woman.  
  
"Wha's your name?" Trunks asked, curious, large blue eyes inquisitive and sensitive.  
  
'Watashi wa…," Mars hesitated, feeling unsure of who she was as she sat on the hard wooden chair, outfitted in jeans and a borrowed red jacket. "Rei," she finished finally, apologizing mentally to Luna and Artemis. The Transition to 24/7 Senshi was a vow of sorts, but she felt so darn sick and tired of being Super Sailor Mars. She just wanted to be Hino Rei, the ex-Shinto priestess, once more.  
  
"Sugoi. Watashi wa Trunks, demo…you knew that, ne? So…did Gohan-sensei get attacked by one of the Jinzouningen, Rei-san?" the boy replied shyly and Mars- -Rei, she told herself firmly- -had the impression that this serious, mature little boy would be the perfect match for quiet, sometimes silly Ami.   
  
Oh, he had asked a question…  
  
"Ah…no, Trunks-kun, not exactly," Rei admitted, nervously fingering a wisp of the few loose strands of her dark hair. "He startled me and I…accidentally let loose…one of my stronger attacks."  
  
"Oh," Trunks thought aloud, standing in front of her to looking up into her sad face. "You're lost, aren't you? And you're sad, too…," he mused, then he smiled innocently. "Gohan-sensei will forgive you and he wouldn't like it if you were sad. There's so many sad people…like my okaasan."   
  
"Yes, I noticed…" Rei paused. "What happened to her?" She flushed, as if she felt like she'd intruded on something deeply personal. "Oh, gomen nasai, Trunks-kun! I'm being so rude!" Where, she thought briefly, was the fiery Rei that wouldn't have given a damn, once upon a time? I must be mellowing with my old age, she joked mentally. A couple thousand years'll do that to a person…  
  
"It's okay," Trunks was saying, and he dashed across the cluttered room to an open chest filled with clothes, books- -that one with the ancient green cover was by Ami, she noted with a grin, and other such things. The boy found his treasure, lifting a worn and faded piece of paper…no, it was a photograph.  
  
Without asking her, Trunks climbed up into her lap, holding the picture up before them both.  
  
There was a large group of men and two women in it, standing before a yellow house on a small island. One she recognized as a younger Buruma, who was happily nestled in the arms of a tall man with spiky black hair- -heck, most of the men in the picture had spiky black hair (must've been a trend back then or something)- -and a few battle scars on his face.  
  
"Was he your father?" she asked cautiously, pointing to the tall, scarred man.  
  
He shook his head, his soft hair tickling her chin. "No." Pointing to a smaller man with a grimace of irritation on his face and amazingly vertical spiky (guess) black hair, Trunks tilted his head back to smile up at his adopted 'chair'. "That's my otousan. He's Vejiita-ouji of the Saiya-jins." As an afterthought, he added, "I'm half Saiya-jin. So's Gohan-sensei."  
  
"Really?"  
  
"Hai."  
  
"Nani?" Turning slightly, Rei saw the semi-burnt man pull himself up into a sitting position, his face twisted painfully. "Ack! Gomen nasai, Gohan-san!" she squeaked, not even knowing what he was like.  
  
To her surprise, he grinned forgivingly, holding out a bandaged hand. "Um, konnichi wa…I think…" When she took his hand to shake it, he yelped, smiling sheepishly. "Gomen…didn't know you'd hit me that hard."  
  
She turned red.  
  
"That's Gohan-sensei's otousan, Gokuu," Trunks informed her, pointing to a tall man with a wide, amiable smile one a face framed by…spiky black hair. "And his okaasan, Chichi, is there." He jabbed a finger at the only other woman in the photo, a pretty one with black hair tied up in a bun-slash-ponytail reminiscent faintly of a Chinese style. She was dressed in a stylish kimono of sorts with a slit up the legs, and she held a small boy with long black (and spiky) hair, dressed in a blue gi with a white collar. "That's Gohan-sensei," Trunks giggled, motioning toward the cute little boy the woman Chichi held.  
  
"Gomen nasai," Rei said quietly to Gohan and he waved her apology away with a clumsy, thickly wrapped hand.   
  
" 'S'all right. I've had worse, what with the twins from hell and all."  
  
"These Jinzouningen," she began hesitantly, keeping her voice low so as to not alarm the boy happily talking in her lap, "What are they like?"  
  
"I'll tell you later," Gohan informed her faintly, "but as for right now…Buruma-san's coming down the hall with some soup and crackers."  
  
When she looked at him curiously, he grinned again, tapping his nose and ears lightly with an undamaged thumb. "I'm half Saiya-jin, remember? Heightened senses come with the package. One of the few advantages."  
  
Buruma entered the room, true to Gohan's word.  
  
"Eat up, the lot of you! No time to waste," the woman ordered cheerfully, though her voice sounded lightly depressed.  
  
As Rei gratefully spooned warm soup into her waiting mouth, she realized something idly.  
  
Time…  
  
Time.  
  
By jove, TIME!  
  
She managed to keep her excitement in, though her senses jumped joyously in her body. She was in the wrong time, not the wrong place!  
  
Hallelujah.  
  
(*)  
  
"Do you know where we're going?" Venus complained for the umpteenth time, glaring daggers at Juunanagou, who wasn't listening to her as he sped far above the posted speed limit.   
  
After she waited a moment, getting no response, she settled back into the seat, alternating between staring with great interest at the blurs that supposedly represented billboards and at glaring in the general direction of the oblivious driver, wondering how long it would take to summon the Chain Wink Sword and beat him with its hilt (or the flat edge of its blade, but that was beside the point) before he could pull those lightning-fast reflexes of his into action.  
  
Opting to not try his mettle, she sunk lower into the seat.  
  
Then he braked.  
  
Screaming one short screech, Venus was jerked forward, long blonde locks spilling all over the place as her forehead hit the dashboard elegantly. Blinking away stars, she grinned goofily for a moment. Bruises on the forehead, cute cyborg men, traffic tickets…knitting her eyebrows together, she mused as to how the three were connected as Juunanagou calmly unbuckled himself, stepping out of the vehicle while Venus tried to regain control over her spinning mind (and stomach).  
  
He'd felt the energies of his twin sister and her husband, as well as the other Z Fighters, at the Capsule Corps. building that woman, Buruma, lived in.  
  
Apparently, his sister had felt him coming, for she stood in the open doorway, shoulder length blonde hair tucked behind her ears.  
  
Something was different about Juuhachigou, he realized immediately, and it wasn't just the slight roundness to her appearance…he felt a weak, but growing double energy about her…as if she were with…child?  
  
Aw, dang.  
  
Gone a few months and his sister gets hitched _and_ pregnant.  
  
Sometimes he thought the cosmos was out to see how much it could twist his life.  
  
"Brother?" Juuhachigou asked, face breaking into a smile.  
  
"Hai," he nodded, smirking as he heard Venus curse fluently after unbuckling and tripping out of the car, her walking stick (branch), clattering to the ground. "Venus-chan, I'd like you to meet my sister…Juuhachigou."  
  
"Gee, y'know, that's great and all, but my face is kinda stuck to the ground at the moment, so I'll be a few minutes, 'kay? Ow, stupid, God-awful prophecies…why couldn't we get a frickin' moment or two of exercise?" The rest of Venus' words were lost in a foul mutter from which one or two expletives escaped.  
  
"What…," Juuhachigou blinked, "brings you here, dear brother? And who is the young woman I suppose you brought?"  
  
"She's the reason I'm here," he nodded thoughtfully, "and her name is Venus…or Aino Minako, your pick. I prefer 'complete idiot,' however."  
  
"I HEARD THAT, YOU INSUFFERABLE LITTLE…!"  
  
Helplessly, Juuhachigou motioned for her brother to enter the house. "I don't think Buruma and her parents will mind too much."  
  
Juunanagou smiled affectionately at his twin. "Thanks. Excuse me for a moment."  
  
Turning, he blurred behind the car, flashing back, a stunned-into-silence Venus thrown over his shoulder, the coat riding up her thighs once again.  
  
A few seconds passed and the elfin Senshi finally remembered to blink, kicking him once, sharply, in the chest, her face pressed tightly to his shoulder blades. Not that she truly minded…he had a very nice back, especially when it was this close to her face. Her cheeks exploded into color and she berated herself for a moment.  
  
"May we?" he asked pleasantly and Juuhachigou stepped back into the main hall, motioning them in.   
  
"By the way," Juunanagou added softly as he passed his sister, gently lowering a red-face Venus to a sitting position on the carpet, "when are you expecting, dear sister?"  
  
Her mouth formed an 'o' of surprise and she smiled shyly, touching her stomach absently. "About six months from now," she confessed.  
  
"Congratulations to you and Kuririn," he smiled. "I trust he treats you well."  
  
"Very," Juuhachigou laughed. "As if I were a goddess as well as his wife. I love being in love."  
  
Venus, who was quite lost by now, shrugged and pretended she knew what was going on.   
  
  
  
  
  
Yay! Another chapter, another part! So, next chapter will continue the various parts I have started and should be second or third to the last chapter, as well as starting the Makoto part. Whew! Now, for the person who's outraged that I put Makoto with Yamucha, I happen to _LIKE_ Yamucha. I honestly have never seen (from what I _have_ seen of DBZ [basically the entire Mirai no Trunks/Cell timeline and probably 2/3 of the rest of the dub]) Yamucha with any woman other than Buruma. So, I put that into action in the Makoto/Yamucha part, okay? You'll see what I mean soon enough…  
  
Purple Mongoose/PallaPlease. Ja mata! I'm working on the next chapter and it should be up tomorrow evening, minna-san!  
  
[PS~ Major thanksies are due to Kawaii Lil Dejiko, who suggested the basic interaction between Gohan, Rei, and Trunks that I used earlier. I dunno if I can write a Rei/Trunks fic, Dejiko-san, I'm unable to think of Rei with anyone BUT Gohan. 0o;;]  
  
[PSS~ I'd love to have you guys review! I read every single review with great happiness and I pay attention to very single one of your comments! Gracias! Domo arigatou gazaimasu! Thanks a bajillion!]  
  
DISCLAIMER:  
The Sailor Senshi are © to Takeuchi Naoko-san, Kodansha, DiC, Cloverway, Toei Animation, Mixx Entertainment, etc.  
The Dragonball characters are © to Toriyama Akira-san, Shogakun (?), FUNimation, Toei Animation, Viz Entertainment, etc.  
"Ai no Yume" in its entirety, all situations and plot devices thus far, is © to myself, referred to on-line as PallaPlease or Purple Mongoose/PallaPlease.[Credit for idea for scene in 'Time Warped' is given duly to Kawaii Lil Dejiko.] 


	5. The Complexities of Time (and Women)

Ai no Yume  
  
*****  
  
The Complexities of Time (and Women)  
  
  
[Note: Some of the following stuff might seem to go too fast for you readers, so I sincerely apologize. Please forgive me, I'm kind of running on semi-empty at the moment. Thanks! By the way, Chibi Mars, you have got the most beautiful pic for your bio…it's so pretty! Anyway, the Makoto stuff isn't as long or good as I wished it would be. But worry not, Mako-fans! She plays a larger role later.]  
  
  
My nose itches, was Jupiter's first thought. Maybe if I scratch it, it'll stop itching.   
  
Dragging herself up into a sitting position, she stared into the darkness of the night.  
  
Something wasn't right.  
  
Oh, she snapped sarcastically at herself, could it be that there isn't A FLIPPING _MOON_?! Mumbling to herself, she rubbed her head and glared evilly at a defenseless ant scurrying past her.  
  
"Where am I?" she murmured after a moment, trying to search everything with her disoriented mind. Dang, the others weren't there. She had the gloomy feeling that she shouldn't have thought everything would turn out great, because nothing ever did. Dying many, many times can and will have that affect on a gal.  
  
Something furry brushed against her neck.  
  
With a startled scream, Jupiter lurched forward, shot her hand back and caught something by the throat, choking it like mad even as she felt whiskers brush her hand. "Why can't I get a minute of peace?!" she roared, throwing the struggling creature before her. A loud 'CLANG!' resounded as it bounced off a large, round metallic object. "And screw you, whatever you are!"  
  
"Puar?" came a man's voice. "Puar, daijoubu?"  
  
Damn.  
  
A light came on in a previously unseen house and the door was opened, revealing the silhouette of a VERY strong-looking man.  
  
Double damn.  
  
With a whooshing sigh, she quickly, quietly summoned her Senshi uniform. She did _not_ want to get caught naked after almost killing…whatever-it-was.  
  
The man stepped out and Jupiter stood up, crossing her arms, prepared to summon a Sparkling Wide Pressure if need be.  
  
"Who's there?" he called, falling into a fighting stance, ready for any semblance of combat (even if he wasn't the most achieved of soldiers).  
  
"Super Sailor Jupiter," she sneered, itching between her shoulder blades to fight, wanting to use the awesome powers that had remained dormant for millennia. "And you are?"  
  
"Yamucha. Are you friend or foe?"  
  
"Depends. You out to take over the world and/or destroy humanity?"  
  
"Um…I don't think so…"  
  
She relaxed and grinned widely in the chilly dark, ordering her fighting instincts to calm _down_ while striding over to the lit doorway, scooping up the dizzy creature she had throttled as she moved to the house.  
  
"So," Jupiter began, smiling sweetly as she handed the battered, blue cat-thing to the man, "you gonna invite me in or stand still like a cute, idiotic statue all night?"  
  
(*)  
  
"You're name is Super Sailor Jupiter, ne?" Buruma was saying, handing Makoto (who had changed into a black sweater and green leggings, having switched back from Senshi mode) a cup of hot cocoa. "Are you, by any chance, one of the Senshi from the AD era?"  
  
Makoto smiled gratefully and nodded, taking a sip of the hot chocolate.  
  
Instantly, she spat it back out, jumping forward in her chair a little. Bringing her thumb to her chin, she jutted it out, wiping the mixture off it sheepishly. "Gomen nasai, Buruma-san, it's just…" She gestured helplessly at the blue mug. "It's horrible," she finally finished.  
  
Sighing, Buruma smiled lopsidedly. "I know," she agreed, letting the two men (and the hovering cat-thing) stew impatiently, "I'm not exactly an accomplished cook."  
  
"Well, then," Makoto brushed the leggings carefully, grinning widely, "I'll ask for the liberty of making some _real_ hot chocolate for ya'll." Unabashedly, she winked at Yamucha (who turned red), saying, "Thanks, cutie, for finding me. C'mon, Whiskers, I need a kitchen slave."  
  
Grabbing poor Puar by his looping tail, she dragged him into the bowels of the tiled kitchen, from which came the horrified cry of, "Good Zeus! How can you cook in this mess?!"  
  
Buruma didn't answer; she was preoccupied with glaring at a squirming Yamucha.  
  
Vejiita smirked and leaned back against the wall, arms folded across his chest. For once, the Almighty Woman wasn't going to glare daggers at _him_. Oh, he was going to en-JOY watching Yamucha get the heat, even if it wasn't deserved.  
  
(*)  
  
In a high voice, Puar commented dubiously, "Are you sure this is right?"  
  
"Yes, I'm sure," Makoto snapped snippily, shaking the excess sugar back into the brimming container (bucket) carefully. "I'm the cook, remember? Me chef, you assistant."  
  
"But that's," Puar objected, "not how Buruma-san makes it." He/She/It paused momentarily, before conceding, "Point taken, Makoto-san."  
  
"Toldja. Now, hold still while I break this egg open on your head."  
  
"NANI?!"  
  
"I'm joking, I'm joking! YEESH, you people are so flippin' serious! Criminy, I wish Minako was here…" Pause. "On second thought, I don't think Buruma-san wants her kitchen in itty bitty pieces."  
  
(*)  
  
"What was that?" Buruma attacked peevishly, glaring at Yamucha.  
  
"I don't know!" he defended quickly, taking a step backward and looking pleadingly at the widely smirking Vejiita.   
  
"Oh, right, she was flirting without any reason at all," Buruma drawled sarcastically, frowning darkly. "I don't trust you."  
  
"Wh…what?!"  
  
Casting an evil look at both men, Buruma stormed out of the room.  
  
In the silence that ensued, Yamucha turned to Vejiita. "I knew our relationship's been strained 'cause of the training and all, but…I don't even know Makoto!"   
  
"Trust me on this one," Vejiita laughed sardonically, "don't try to rationalize _anything_ that woman says or does. You'll find your head rolling on the ground in a matter of seconds."  
  
"Gee," Yamucha replied, "that's so very good to hear."  
  
(*)  
  
"Lighten up."  
  
"…"  
  
"You have absolutely no life, you know that, right?"  
  
"…"  
  
"Juuhachigou-san- -that's your name, right?- -is he always so…I dunno, lifeless?"  
  
"I take insult."  
  
"Oh. Migosh! It talks!"  
  
Juuhachigou watched with great interest as her twin brother politely refrained from hitting the trench coat-wearing girl over her blonde head. Though, from the intensity of the power levels radiating from Venus/Minako, she could more than handle herself.  
  
Leading the odd duo through the vast house that was Buruma's, the android woman touched her rounded stomach fondly, feeling the tiny life bubbling inside her.  
  
"Baka."  
  
"Jerk."  
  
"Ditz."  
  
"Bully."   
  
"Buffoon."  
  
"Baboon."  
  
"Pathetic."  
  
"Weak."  
  
The two continued arguing until Juuhachigou opened a door leading to a large, spacious room in which a pretty woman with light blue hair cut at her shoulders was cuddling a small baby boy with lavender hair and constantly downcast, thick eyebrows arched downward over a pair of sweet blue eyes. The woman, Buruma, was teasing a scowling man with strange black hair and the same thick, unapproving eyebrows of the gurgling infant.   
  
"Awww, don't worry, Trunks, your 'tousan's just being an idiot…like always," she laughed, sticking her tongue out at the man, who grunted.  
  
Another man, a smaller one with short blackish-brown hair and an unusual lack of a nose, looked up at Juuhachigou and sat up from his seat on the couch, motioning for her to sit. Grateful, she did so, smiling at the short man.  
  
Venus paused in the process of poking Juunanagou with her walking stick (tree trunk); the man stopped making rude gestures with his hand.   
  
"That's a lot of people," Venus finally said appreciatively, seeing three women (one of whom was a fluffy-haired blonde with a spacey expression), many, many men, and one or two…animal things. Was that a floating cat or a floating monkey? Maybe she didn't want to know…  
  
"It's about time!" Buruma cried as she patted Trunks' back maternally, "We've been waiting for you two for God-knows-how-long! It's almost time for you to call back your companions."  
  
Venus blinked.  
  
Juunanagou stared.  
  
Venus stared.  
  
Juunanagou blinked.  
  
This pattern repeated itself a few more times until Vejiita rolled his black eyes in exasperation, snapping, "You do know how to summon your fellow what's-its from another time, right?"  
  
Venus blinked and stared some more, squeaking, "What do you mean?"  
  
"You awoke at different times," Buruma explained, shooting her disgruntled husband a dirty look, "you and the other Senshi. You need to call them back."  
  
"Oh," Venus uttered, realization dawning on her, "we awoke at different times!…That's got to have screwed up some things."  
  
"You," Buruma smiled ironically, subtly leaning against Vejiita, Trunks giggling happily where he rested in the cradle of her crossed legs, "have absolutely no idea."  
  
After a moment's hesitation, Venus timidly put out, "How am I supposed to summon my friends and my lieges? And our guardians?"  
  
"Look in your soul," one of the other women offered, her black hair pulled back in a subtle bun-ponytail mix, a quiet, depressed looking preteen boy seated next to her, his sad expression a mirror to the woman's. "Maybe your power and knowledge is in there."  
  
"What knowledge?" Juunanagou muttered under his breath and Venus casually 'slipped' on her bad foot, stepping sharply on one of his with her good foot so as to 'regain' her 'lost' balance, kicking him swiftly in the shin as she brought her foot back up.  
  
Well, she decided as the bishounen Jinzouningen man next to her rubbed his shin and glared foully at her, it was worth a shot.  
  
Closing her crystal blue eyes, she took a deep breath, held it, then released it in a soft whoosh.   
  
She called through the folds of time.  
  
And she felt them coming.  
  
(*)  
  
Ginzishou snapped her ever-shifting eyes open, spreading her silver wings in the endless darkness she had taken as her home for thousands of years. Her eyes shifted color from green to blue, to red in a mere second's span. They were awake, yes, she could feel it.  
  
Excited, the fist-sized dragon crowed happily, launching herself toward a glimmering orange light, feeling the tug of Venus' call.   
  
  
Behind her, in the pulsing mass of evil her princess had helped seal away, two creatures of pure darkness tore free, one of feminine rotten evil, one of masculine sinister perfection.  
  
They searched for a host, any host as Ginzishou faded away.  
  
A sorrowful red beacon drove through the shadows and both beings smiled cruelly.  
  
One sang of death and possession, one sang of victory and havoc.  
  
They fell upon Mars.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
Oh, geez, this was a WEAK chapter, especially the Buruma-attacks-Yamucha part. However, I noticed that Yamucha and Buruma never had a strong relationship, more like friends pretending to be more, and both became jealous of each other. According to the Bible (yes, I'm Christian), jealousy should not be part of true love. Also, during the Mirai no Trunks/Cell saga PRIOR to Trunks' birth, they were already showing signs of IMMENSE strain on their relationship.  
  
As for the part with Ginzishou (the name of Usagi's jewel, by the way) as a dragon, I noted that there are seven Dragonballs for both Earth and Namek, and there were seven Rainbow Crystals for the Ginzishou. So, I created a dragon.  
  
Next chapter will probably be the last, but an epilogue and teaser are also due. The Mars part plays a VERY major role and I hope I successfully deliver what I've been planning. Okay?  
  
Ryan [my first Muse]: Ja mata until tomorrow night!  
  
What are we going to do tomorrow night, Ryan?  
  
Ryan: The same thing we do every night, Mongoose Palla. Write ourselves senseless and then rot our collective brains on the internet!  
  
But, Ryan, wouldn't we need brains in the first place?  
  
Ryan: Shut-up, Mongoose Palla, or I shall have to hurt you.  
  
Cool!  
  
Purple Mongoose/PallaPlease and Ryan-my-imaginary-Muse.  
  
Ryan: 'Imaginary?!' I'm your first Muse! You created me at Girl Scout camp! Do you not remember?!  
  
Shaddup! I'm trying to end this chapter!  
  
Ryan: *holds bowling ball warningly*   
  
You don't even help me!  
  
Ryan: I know. I'm just an image and an object of abuse.  
  
Duh.  
  
Ryan: Which is why *I* have the bowling ball and *you* don't.  
  
I'm confused…  
  
[PS~ I love "Ai no Yume" so very much and I love it when people take their time to review! You guys rock!]  
  
[PSS~ Yet again, I apologize for the horrible quality of this chapter. *sniffles and grabs the aLiEn tiGEr, Chibi-Kurt, Chibi-Spyke, and bowling ball, sobbing*  
  
Ryan: …*whimper*  
  
Aw, I love you, too! C'mere! *grabs Ryan and hugs the tiny Russian pixie, his red hair in disarray and black wings folded happily* I love my Muses! Do you love yours?]   
  
  
DISCLAIMER:  
The Sailor Senshi are © to Takeuchi Naoko-san, Kodansha, DiC, Cloverway, Toei Animation, Mixx Entertainment, etc.  
The Dragonball characters are © to Toriyama Akira-san, Shogakun (?), FUNimation, Toei Animation, Viz Entertainment, etc.  
"Ai no Yume" in its entirety, all situations and plot devices thus far, is © to myself, referred to on-line as PallaPlease or Purple Mongoose/PallaPlease.[Credit for idea for scene in 'Time Warped' is given duly to Kawaii Lil Dejiko.] 


	6. The Turning

Ai no Yume  
  
*****  
  
The Turning  
  
  
Venus held herself rigid in the center of the large living room, arms held out firmly level with her shoulders, hands straight up, her palms glowing orange. Oh, God, this hurt.   
  
Forcing her mind to ignore the boundaries of time, she pushed herself over the edges, into a mental void that served as the nonexistent plane of the Time Gate. She could sense Makoto nearby, or as near as time would allow in this dank blackness, and, taking the time to swallow a bead of sweat that slid around the curve of her upper lip and into her strangely dry mouth, she latched onto the green light representing Makoto, pulling with all her might, refusing to drag the other life force near her friend along with Jupiter.  
  
Where was Ami? Where was Rei?  
  
In a matter of seconds, Venus had traveled, with her mind, the length of this timeline, having to stop when she found herself slamming into a barrier she could not break. Apparently, the future truly was a secret.  
  
A soft moan keened from her lips. She found herself 'standing' at the brink of a deep abyss. On the other side were two lights - a blue one and a red one. Another timeline? She winced physically and on her body's side she felt a hand touch her shoulder gently and, distantly, she recognized Juunanagou. It hurt deep inside, this traveling…  
  
Steeling her resolve, she dove across the gulf, swooping around Rei and insistently pulling on her. Why was Rei so reluctant?  
  
Her body, she realized faintly, was swaying from side to side, her face pale and sweaty from the exertion. Placing more strain on her person, she lanced forward, into an alternate future.  
  
So weak and exhausted was she that Venus grabbed two identities in the alternate future - Ami's and a young man's.   
  
She pulled them into the void along with her and, having worn out all her energies, she found her way back into her body, falling back to the ground.  
  
Someone caught her, a handsome young man with immaculately perfect features and impossibly straight raven hair.  
  
"Juu…nanagou?" she heard herself murmur and he nodded.  
  
"Thank-you…Juunanagou…"  
  
(*)  
  
It had been three weeks and, though fights with the Jinzouningen were common and oftentimes brutal, Super Sailor Mars (or Rei) had loved every moment of it.   
  
She was currently checking Gohan for any wounds, even as he loudly insisted that he was perfectly fine, and why the hell did she have to keep asking him if he hurt anywhere?   
  
"Baka," she teased, nodding for Trunks to go home and tell his mother they had driven the bastard twins back.  
  
As the small boy obediently flew off, hair whipped by the breeze, Mars turned back to her tall male companion, affectionately ruffling his hair. Her fingernail accidentally came into contact with a newly pink scar- -from the fire incident- -and he winced, the twin scar on his jaw line shifting with the subtle movement.  
  
"Gomen," she apologized and he smiled, causing her heart to flutter and his to stop for a moment before beginning anew.  
  
Standing to her feet in the thick dirt, she wiped her gloves off nervously on her red miniskirt, taking a few steps backward unconsciously. She smiled tentatively, until she saw his expression of slight horror.   
  
"Nani?" she asked softly, afraid to turn around.  
  
"Mars-chan! Look at yourself!" Gohan cried, on his feet in an instant and slipping in the dirt as he tried to get to her.  
  
She glanced down and choked back a panicked shriek. She was…flickering…in and out of sight.  
  
Was that Venus in the back of her mind?  
  
"No," Mars sobbed and she felt Gohan pull her into a hug, even though she was without sustenance at points, "I don't want to go anymore! I'm happy, I'm happy, I swear to God and my ancestors, I'm happy! Don't take me away!"  
  
Tears fell through her skin and she turned her face up to Gohan's, an unreadable expression on his.  
  
She smiled weakly, but tenderly, at him.  
  
"Gohan-kun, I lo-"  
  
She vanished.  
  
(*)  
  
Makoto glanced across at Yamucha, the bumbling ex-desert bandit, who was trying to help her and Puar (who had a surprising knack for all things sugar-involved) bake a cake. Unfortunately, the sweet (and overenthusiastic) man kept getting in the way.  
  
So Makoto, decked out in flour, sugar, and a piece or two of batter, grabbed his collar and shook her head. "You're getting in the way, silly," she teased the man she'd known for three weeks, "and I don't need you in the way!" Impulsively, she leaned up (up? She'd never had to lean up for a guy before!) and kissed him quickly.  
  
A startled gasp came from the doorway and the three chefs turned to see Buruma staring, her face pale and disbelieving. "Yamucha…" The blue-haired woman turned on her heel and ran down the corridor, her broken sobs echoing back into the kitchen.  
  
"Makoto, Buruma and I are…" Yamucha discarded the rest of his statement, shooting down the hall with Puar hot on his heels (hair?).  
  
Angry at herself, Makoto whirled around, slugging the wall, taking steps backward while touching her wet eyes.  
  
She put up no fight when she vanished.  
  
(*)  
  
"I dunno," Buruma told her son and the lithe water sprite of a woman beside him, "I'm not sure I can build a time machine that has enough fuel to take _two_ people back in time. Hell, I don't know if it's a good idea."  
  
"Buruma-san," Ami said firmly, hands clasped before her, "I need to go back in time to try and find my friends and Trunks-san is the only one here that is familiar with the timeline I wish to go back to."  
  
Buruma sighed, shook her head, and turned to look over her shoulder at blueprints. "Okay," she agreed reluctantly, "you win."   
  
Receiving no answer, she glanced back at the duo.  
  
They were gone.  
  
(*)  
  
"-ve you!" Rei screamed into the empty void and she felt tears pour from her eyes.  
  
She could sense the others flying ahead of her, though the one she felt was Ami held an unconscious man in her arms.  
  
Venus was calling.  
  
"No!" she cried, "Nonono! I don't want to go back! I want to be with Gohan-kun! Do you hear me, damn it?! Do you hear me?! Damn you, Minako! DAMN YOU!"  
  
//damnation is such a strong thing to wish on a so-called friend.//  
  
"Nani?" Rei turned, startled.  
  
Something slimy trickled past her ear, whispering into her mind with a gentle woman's voice.  
  
//your little love, gohan, will die in two years time, you realize that.//  
  
"N…no, it's not true! I'll meet him again! I will!"  
  
Another voice joined the first, this one deeper and masculine.  
  
::you have visions, mars, so here's one for you to enjoy.::  
  
|| The Jinzouningen were killing him, ripping into him, tearing into his flesh and laughing at his pain. ||  
  
"You…you're lying!" Rei choked.  
  
|| Trunks, enraged at his best-friend's death, went Super Saiya-jin. He'd lost Rei-san, and now he'd lost Gohan-sensei. ||  
  
//::do you see the pain?::// the voices chimed together.  
  
"…yes…," Rei whispered in a tiny, defeated voice.  
  
::do you want to kill the Jinzouningen?::  
  
"Yes!"  
  
//with all your heart and soul!//  
  
"YES!"  
  
//good. that's what i wanted to hear.//  
  
And then the female one dove into her mind.  
  
Screaming, writhing, and sobbing, Rei lost control over her mind and actions.  
  
Far ahead in the void, a small silver dragon named Ginzishou paused and widened her eerie eyes in horror. {{It has come to pass!}} she cried angrily. {{Damn it all! Now Selenity-hime is even more lost…forgive me, Endymion-ouji…Luna-san, Artemis-san…I have failed you all…}}  
  
With a bone-curdling war scream, Ginzishou dove head first into the orange light.  
  
(*)  
  
Ami slammed into the carpeted floor of a large room and, looking dizzily up as she loosened her grip on an unconscious Trunks, she saw a large group of people staring at her.   
  
A loud "SHIT!!" resounded beside her and she recognized the voice as being Makoto's.  
  
A man with battle scars stared rigidly at Makoto for a moment; then he rushed to her side and helped her up.  
  
"Yamucha…?" Ami heard Makoto whisper.  
  
"YOU MADE IT!!" Ami and Makoto were pulled into a strong hug by a giddy Venus.  
  
"Mars-hime won't," a bell-like voice rang out and pretty much everyone stopped and tilted their heads back to stare at a miniscule, odango-sized dragon the color of liquid silver with eerie eyes constantly changing colors along a seven color spectrum. "Metallia has arisen from the bowels of hell and she brought along with her the evil entity known as Cell." The dragon swooped over the heads of everyone in the room, who considered this sort of thing normal compared to what seemed to happen every other weekend. "Endymion-ouji was killed during the slumber," the dragon continued, voice subdued and elongated face sad.   
  
"NANI?!" screeched the three Senshi present-and-accounted-for.  
  
Unfazed, the dragon continued softly with, "Artemis-san and Luna-san were killed as well. And Selenity-hime…" The dragon swallowed. "Is trapped in a different void, with a young man who is not yet in existence." She motioned with her head at the black-haired woman, Chichi, who blinked and felt her rounded stomach.  
  
"I'm going to have a son…?" she whispered. "Oh, Gokuu…"  
  
"I don't know and don't care who the hell you are or what the hell you are," Venus interrupted with an icy voice, Juunanagou coming to stand beside her warily, "but if you stood by," her voice rose in pitch, getting shrill and frantic, "and let _my_ Artemis-nekoi die, then damn you to straight to hell!" Losing her nerve, Venus crumpled to the floor, crying uncontrollably. Juunanagou knelt beside her, laying his one gloved hand on her right shoulder.  
  
The dragon fluttered onto her left shoulder.  
  
"I am so sorry, Venus-hime. Artemis-san…" The dragon stopped, blinking back tears with the two pairs of eyelids in her eyes. "Artemis-san and Luna-san were like a father and mother to me. I…I know I am not Artemis-san, but he and Luna-san taught me everything they knew and he would not want you to cry. He loved you, you know." Venus snapped her wet face up, startled. "He loved you more than he ever loved Luna-san, but he could never tell you. He knew…he knew you would love another…and maybe in this altered time, if we can destroy Metallia and Cell once more, maybe the man you would have lost in the prophecy will live with you." The dragon smiled enigmatically and rubbed the spines along her spine against Venus' cheek.  
  
"You're…you're spines…they feel like sunbeams," Venus gasped, unable to find any toher description.  
  
"Hai." The dragon cleared her throat, fixing her gaze one every person in the room. "I am Ginzishou," the Senshi gasped collectively, "and I am the dragon of the Solar System! When the seven Tama no Niji are collected and fused into the form of the Ginzishou, I am awakened. Unlike my brothers of Namek and Earth, I do not grant wishes. I fulfill truth. I protect life. I guide the lost." Ginzishou nuzzled Venus once more. "And Venus must lead you all into a war that could mean the destruction of the cosmos or the birth of the altered Crystal Era!" Ginzishou took to the air, arching her back and murmuring a chant.   
  
A blade fell from the air, drifting into Venus hands as Juunanagou kept his hand on her shoulder. It was enameled with golden metal and an orange jewel decorated its hilt. The blade appeared to be covered in rust, but Venus new better.  
  
"The Chain Wink Sword of Magellan Castle," she breathed and Ginzishou dropped into Venus' lap, soft underbelly exposed.   
  
"You are the only one who can bear it," she whispered faintly, "much as Selenity-hime is the only one who can control my mother jewel, the true Ginzishou." Her breathing was erratic and halting. "Metallia comes…"  
  
A brilliant red light filled the room and collective gasps of horror and hatred exploded from every mouth except for infant Trunks, who blinked tiredly.  
  
Mars curtsied mockingly, normally pretty violet eyes glittering with vile power. "This body," she smirked, and Venus saw Metallia mirrored in Mars' eyes, "is very powerful. I can make you see what I want you to see, make you forget what I want you to forget, make you go insane, raise the dead and control them…my, I never knew this little sap had so much power at her exposal. I can't understand why she never used it for her own gain." The smirk grew into a grin of dark malice.  
  
"Bitch! Mars didn't use it for herself because she was honorable!" Venus spat at Metallia/Mars, who grimaced as the spit draped itself on her face. "Damn you, you bitch!"  
  
"Damn me?" Metallia cackled, "You want to _damn_ me? I _AM_ DAMNATION!"  
  
Pivoting, she grinned widely at the thirteen-year old boy, Gohan. "My dear, sweet little boy," her voice became like poisoned sugar, sweet on the outside, but murderous, "I'm going to steal you away so my koibito, Cell, and I can use you for our own twisted little purposes. You have great power, you know, and Rei will need company whenever I choose to leave this confining body." At the defiant, though frightened, look on Gohan's face, Metallia threw her head back and laughed. "Don't worry, boy! This voluptuous little vixen will experience a drawback in age; say ten years, so you won't have to be afraid of playing with her. She'll be ten, you know." The grin became a commanding, evil sneer. "Let's go, child."  
  
A wave of blinding light exploded forth from Metallia and Venus heard Juunanagou scream, defiantly, "Bitch!"  
  
Then the world went black.  
  
  
  
  
  
  
Only the epilogue is left! Yay! Don't worry; things get even freakier in the 'sequel' series, "Ares Denetsu"! Yes, I know, I'm going to get scorching e-mails asking me why I chose Rei or why I'm ending the series here. Well, I explained the Rei thing (and her being possessed helps define her relationship with that cutie Son Gohan we all know and love from DBZ) earlier and the answer to the second I'm-pissed-off topic is simple. I live for cliffhangers! Except when other people write them and they don't have the next part up. I HATE THAT. (Yeah, I'm a hypocrite. I'm human. Every human's a hypocrite. Except for Jesus. Jesus is da BOMB!!)  
  
Ryan: That's IT?! That's IT?! Moron! Sometimes I wish I was able to help write these things, but, noooo, I just inspire you…bah, humbug.  
  
C'mere, cutie! *grabs Ryan and hugs him happily* Ja mata, minna-san!  
  
Purple Mongoose/PallaPlease.   
  
[PS~ Reviews make me a happy person and I'll write even faster if ya praise me and shower me with lavish compliments!!]  
  
[PSS~ *giant bowling ball is thrown by Ryan into Mongoose Palla's face* Owie…okay, I'll deflate my ego…come, Fred, you're going on a diet. {My ego has a name. 0o;}]  
  
[PSSS~ Remember: Muses are your responsibility and you have to not only care for them, but you have to care _about_ them. Don't abandon your Muses. They need love.  
  
Ryan: You _do_ love me!  
  
Of course I do! *kisses Ryan*  
  
Ryan: Gurk…too much affection…  
  
I'm affectionate! Get used to my being a 13-year old girl! I'm allowed to love my family and my Muses! Proud to _not_ be a rebellious teen!…okay, maybe I _do_ yell a little bit…but I'm not ashamed to be seen with my family! Go family! Go Muses!]   
  
  
DISCLAIMER:  
The Sailor Senshi are © to Takeuchi Naoko-san, Kodansha, DiC, Cloverway, Toei Animation, Mixx Entertainment, etc.  
The Dragonball characters are © to Toriyama Akira-san, Shogakun (?), FUNimation, Toei Animation, Viz Entertainment, etc.  
"Ai no Yume" in its entirety, all situations and plot devices thus far, is © to myself, referred to on-line as PallaPlease or Purple Mongoose/PallaPlease.[Credit for idea for scene in 'Time Warped' is given duly to Kawaii Lil Dejiko.] 


	7. Epilogue | Blonde Wisdom

Ai no Yume  
  
*****  
  
Epilogue | Blonde Wisdom  
  
  
She opened her eyes slowly, gazing through the fog hazily. A weight was on her legs and she realized, absently, that she was Minako; she had switched back from Venus.   
  
Propping herself up on her elbows, Minako stared at the sleeping Juunanagou, his head resting on his crossed arms which, in turn, were resting on her legs. He was seated in a chair pulled up to the bed she was asleep in and she smiled fondly.  
  
He's very beautiful and sweet at times, she thought suddenly, and then her eyes widened. I did _not_ just think that! Bad thoughts! Bad thoughts!  
  
"My brother has been there the entire time you've been unconscious, once he himself came to."  
  
Juuhachigou drew a chair up beside the bed, smiling at a blushing Minako. "He hides his deepest emotions from people…I know he acts stubborn and arrogant and he treats people like dirt…but he has a good heart underneath all that bravado." She smiled again, one hand coming up to rest on her enlargening stomach. "It took a man's wish of a dragon to show me that my softer emotions weren't malfunctions, and it took my love for that man to show Juunanagou that love and honesty weren't weak."  
  
Minako fell silent, fingers playing with her golden hair, hair ribbon folded on a bedside dresser.  
  
With a laugh, Juuhachigou picked it up with her fingers. "Red ribbon," she smiled, pointing to the patch on her shirt.  
  
Minako giggled, then sobered. "What happened to the boy, Gohan? Where is Ginzishou-ryuu?"  
  
Juuhachigou sighed, wrapping her arms protectively about her middle. "He was taken by Metallia and Cell. Ginzishou is in the alcove over your head."  
  
Minako glanced up to see the silver sheen of Ginzishou's scales and she heard the soft sound of even, sleepy breathing.   
  
"I thought once that I was invincible," Juuhachigou said softly, suddenly, "and that death wasn't something I should fear. But now…I have a husband, who loves me more than life itself as I do him, and I carry our child in my womb…I can't not be afraid of death." She lifted her ice blue eyes to stare piercingly at Minako. "I have no choice but life."  
  
The Senshi of Magellan Castle of Venus sighed, shoulders drooping. "I have no reason to live," she confessed sadly.   
  
"You have Ginzishou-ryuu," Juuhachigou argued, "You have your friends, who are worried sick about you. You have your love for my brother, whether or not you are willing to admit its existence."  
  
Minako's breath caught in her throat and she stared unseeingly at the still-slumbering Juunanagou, his lips parted slightly and his short eyelashes standing out on his pale skin.  
  
"Yes…," Minako whispered to herself, leaning over to caress his cheek once as Juuhachigou smiled tenderly at the scene, "I have love to live for."  
  
She blinked back tears.  
  
"I have love."  
  
++ ++ ++ ++ ++  
  
end "Ai no Yume"  
  
++ ++ ++ ++ ++  
  
That's it! "Ai no Yume" is finished! Wow! The only other time I've finished a chapter story quicker than this is my Digimon fic, "Holes in the Heart" (under other penname, PallaPlease), in two days time! Hot dang!  
  
Tell me if you like it.  
  
Tell me if you dislike it.  
  
Tell me if you love it.  
  
Tell me if you hate it.  
  
Tell me if you want me to start work on "Ares Denetsu" right away!  
  
Bai bai!  
  
Purple Mongoose/PallaPlease.  
  
[PS~ Your support has meant so much to me! Thank-you all! God bless ya!]  
  
  
DISCLAIMER:  
The Sailor Senshi are © to Takeuchi Naoko-san, Kodansha, DiC, Cloverway, Toei Animation, Mixx Entertainment, etc.  
The Dragonball characters are © to Toriyama Akira-san, Shogakun (?), FUNimation, Toei Animation, Viz Entertainment, etc.  
"Ai no Yume" in its entirety, all situations and plot devices thus far, is © to myself, referred to on-line as PallaPlease or Purple Mongoose/PallaPlease.[Credit for idea for scene in 'Time Warped' is given duly to Kawaii Lil Dejiko.] 


End file.
